Many teens question if drugged driving is really as risky as drunk driving. Driving under the influence of marijuana and other drugs is as risky, if not more so!

RADD (Recording Artists, Actors and Athletes Against Drunk Driving) in partnership with:

• Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP)
• Governors Highway Safety Association (GHSA)
• Ohio Office of Traffic Safety (OTSO)
• Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD)
• Ohio SADD
• Higher Ed Center (HECAOD)
• RADD’s corporate and community supporters and its funders led by Ford Driving Skills for Life

is launching a public awareness campaign to educate teens and young adults, ages 14-24 about the risks of driving under the influence of prescription, over-the-counter (OTC) drugs, and marijuana.

This campaign will be launching state wide in the fall of 2016, and it will utilize peer-to-peer social media messaging, as well as messages from local celebrities, sports personalities, and prominent Ohioans.

The plan focuses on 3 key issues:

1. Think before getting behind the wheel high – drugs weaken your driving skills.
2. The consequences of driving under the influence of drugs are too great to risk your future.
3. Think people can’t recognize if you’re high or not when driving? Law Enforcement is trained to detect impaired driving, including driving high, and is actively looking.

There is a Big Need:

Teens and young adults are more likely to engage in risky driving behavior after using marijuana than alcohol.

31.3% of marijuana-using 1st year college students (ages 18-20) drove after using the drug, compared to 6.8% of alcohol users who drove shortly after drinking.

For high school seniors, driving after marijuana was more common than driving after heavy drinking. In 2006 13.1% reported driving after use or riding after driver’s use of marijuana, while for heavy drinking it was 9.5%.

What You Can Do

Encourage friends to only drive and ride when the driver is sober. Have a plan with your parents for what you should do if your ride has used alcohol or any other drug. Don’t use drugs or alcohol unless you are old enough to use them legally. Offer to be the designated driver for your friends if they have used a substance.